14 DAY TRIAL // Even before AMD officially announced the introduction of its latest graphics processing unit, the RV790-based Radeon HD 4890 was expected to be a great overclocker, providing computer and gaming enthusiasts with the means to increase their computer visual performance by tweaking the GPU. When released, AMD also trumped the overclocking capabilities of its latest Radeon card, which was said to be capable of delivering clock speeds of around 1GHz, a figure that is somewhat unprecedented in the world of desktop graphics cards.
Following the release of the 55nm RV790, there were reports that AMD felt there was no need for partners to release factory overclocked versions of the latest Radeon card, especially since the dual-GPU Radeon HD 4870 X2 was still a choice for overclocking enthusiasts and high-end gamers. However, it appears that a number of AMD partners have already rolled out HD 4890 cards that are equipped with a factory-overclocked GPU.
Graphics card makes such as PowerColor, MSI, Sapphire Technology and others have released or are planning to unveil custom designs of said card, delivering speeds near the 1000MHz mark. This is a considerable increase in performance, considering that the standard RV790 GPU is clocked at 850MHz. However, the boost of clock speeds will likely increase the price of the card, which is currently estimated at around US$249, for the basic model.
AMD's Radeon RV790 GPU has been designed with 800 stream processors, 40 texture unit, 16 render back-ends and a 256-bit memory bus. The card's 55nm GPU is paired with GDDR5 memory to deliver an optimum level of performance with support for increased clock speeds, when the card is featured with a custom cooling solution.
PowerColor has already launched its latest Radeon HD 4890, which has been equipped with a PCS+ cooling system and a GPU clocked at 950MHz. However, an upcoming card from Sapphire will provide users with a 1GHz GPU, straight out of the box, with the release of the company's next-generation Atomic card.